New rankings show SF's top-rated and most-improved public middle schools

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August 29, 2019

How strong are the public middle schools in San Francisco?

With a fresh school year kicking off, we analyzed newly released data from Niche.com — which include comprehensive report cards, rankings and reviews — to identify those schools that made the biggest strides last year and those that lead their peers.

For the 2019-2020 school year, the school, located at 2055 Silver Ave., enrolls 251 students. Willie L. Brown Jr. Middle School serves a diverse population: 41% of students identify as black, 27% identify as Hispanic and 12% identify as Asian. Niche graded the school a C for academics (on an A-D scale).

The overall ranking comes from Niche's proprietary algorithms. A school's ranking might change due to many factors, including the relative rankings of similar schools and whether a school gained or lost peers due to openings or closings. Other numbers come from current public data from the U.S. government.

Academically, 10% of Willie L. Brown Jr. Middle School's students scored as proficient or above in math, and 21% did so in reading. That's compared to city averages of 42% in math and 48% in reading. The school's improved overall rating is notable in that it serves a less-affluent population, with 71% of students qualifying for free or reduced lunch, 12% more than the city average.

It's not the only school that's climbed Niche's rankings this year. A. P. Giannini Middle saw its overall rating increase from an A- to an A. The school is located at 3151 Ortega St. and is much larger, currently serving 1,196 students, of whom 64% identify as Asian and 16% identify as white.

Niche graded A. P. Giannini Middle an A- for academics on an A-D scale. The school's latest math proficiency was at 69%, and reading proficiency was 75%.

Presidio Middle School also saw improvement in its overall rating, from A- to A. The school is located at 450 30th Ave. and has 1,134 students currently enrolled, of whom 52% identify as Asian, 21% identify as white and 11% identify as multiracial.

Niche graded Presidio Middle School an A- for academics on an A-D scale. Its latest math proficiency was at 69%, and reading proficiency was 70%.

While some public middle schools in San Francisco are moving up the ranks, others are consistently top-rated overall, including:

Want more of the latest intel on San Francisco schools? Hoodline also analyzed the latest Niche ratings for the city's public elementary schools.

This story was created automatically using data from Niche.com, then reviewed by an editor before publication. Click here for more about how and why Hoodline is automating local news. Got thoughts about what we're doing? Go here to share your feedback.